Acu Hoop

The Acu Hoop is weighted and so differs quite considerably from a traditional small hula hoop. The one I tried wa 1.5lb (Small), which is designed for children and teenagers weighing between 40 and 80lbs.

First of all I had to assemble the hoop following the instructions on the box, which proved slightly more difficult than I had originally thought. The Acu Hoop is made up of eight brightly-coloured curved segments, which when fitted together, form the hoop, approximately 36 inches in diameter.

You have to be careful to make sure that all the segments are fastened securely and at the right angle, otherwise when in use the hoop will come apart and fly across the room, which happened to me on several occasions!

I have been using the Acu Hoop for about a fortnight now and started by exercising for between one and three minutes each day for the first week. At first it hurt my stomach muscles, and was very difficult to keep the actual hoop in motion. I had to work very fast and move to keep the hoop going, to stop it falling on to the floor. However, the more layers of clothing I wore, the less pain I felt!

By the second week I had increased the time to between five and ten minutes a day, and although I could still feel the impact on my abdominal muscles, it didn’t really hurt any more and I felt that I could have increased the time even longer. 

I found the Acu Hoop really fun and felt that using it was very good  exercise and that it was actually doing me some good. 

Ideally you need plenty of space to practice with the hoop, preferably outside in a garden, which would be absolutely essential if adults were to use the hoop for arm and neck slimming exercises.

Acu Hoops are priced from £12.99 for children sizes and from £35 for adult sizes.

Order online at www.sooperhoop.co.uk or telephone 020 8203 5171 for mail order services.